When it comes to your oral health, prevention is the name of the game. Cavities are the number one concern of our dentists because in most cases, they lead to other, more severe dental conditions that we treat every day.
Gum disease is one of the most common oral conditions in the United States. According to the latest estimates, between 70 and 80-percent of adults suffer from gum disease. That is a staggering number and the reason why we try to educate our patients on avoiding cavities.
How Your Diet Can Hurt Your Teeth
There is no question that your diet determines how many cavities you get. Eating sweets and sticky or crunchy snacks are bad for your teeth and promote the growth of acid, which in turn causes plaque that develops into bacteria. The bad news is that sugar is not your friend and you can find the offending ingredient in almost everything you eat, even things that are not sweet.
The good news is that according to some scientific research published in the British Medical Journal, cavities could be reversed with a healthy diet.
In this study, the most significant improvement happened in a group of children that ate a grain-free diet and foods such as milk, lean meats, fruits, and vegetables. Along with a balanced diet, this group took vitamin D.
The results of this study are significant because for many years we believed that once you had a cavity, it could not be reversed. The promise of this new revelation could be groundbreaking for dentistry.
This discovery backs the findings of one of the most acclaimed dentists in the United States, West A. Price, who found a close link between “modern foods” and cavities.
One of his most astonishing findings was that isolated indigenous tribes around the world had perfect teeth and almost no tooth decay, without professional dental care. According to the ADA, tooth decay happens when a person regularly eats carbohydrates made with sugars and starches, among other foods made with processed sugars.
With this knowledge, we can confidently say that eating foods found in nature and avoiding processed foods is one of the best things you can do to avoid cavities.
